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If you are a scholar, a student, or simply an enthusiast, you are invited to participate in our special programme: Italian for Art Historians.

This programme combines an intensive Italian language course and a seminar series on Italian Renaissance art entitled "Florentine Art between the 14th and the 16th centuries". The classes are designed to accommodate every level of competence from beginners to those fluent in Italian. Where appropriate they will extend existing skills, as well as introduce new students to the art of reading both Italian texts and Italian art.

Our course will be held at the Istituto Donatello in Florence, a city which has for centuries been considered one of the major cultural and artistic centres of Europe, as well as the birthplace of the modern Italian language.

During your stay in Florence you will have occasion to study and visit the buildings and cultural sites discussed in the seminars, and get a feel for the Florentine Renaissance.

The course will also include the visit of Tuscan cities like Siena.

Programme

The course consists of 6 hours a day:
The first part (9.00 AM - 11.00 AM) is dedicated to Italian grammar. The second part (11.00 - 13.00 AM) consists of classes in Italian conversation and study of requisite art history vocabulary. The third part (2.00 PM - 4.00 PM) is comprised of a series of seminars on Italian art history.
On weekends, we organize excursions to extend knowledge of Italian and Tuscan culture as well as for relaxation.

Four weeks: Euro 790
(DD/MM: 07/03-01/04; 04/07-29/07; 05/09 - 30/09)

Two weeks: Euro 550
(DD/MM: 07/03-18/03; 04/07-15/07; 05/09-16/09)

  • Week 1
    Monday : Introduction
    Tuesday : "Florence: The city and society in the 15th Century"
    Wednesday : Visit: From Piazza Duomo to Piazza Signoria
    Thursday : "Giotto and 14th Century art"
    Friday : Visit: Santa Croce
  • Week 2
    Monday : "The revolution of Perspective"
    Tuesday : "Ghiberti, Donatello, and the development of sculpture"
    Wednesday : Excursion to Arezzo: frescoes of Piero della Francesca in S. Francesco Church
    Thursday : "Florence: from Cosimo il Vecchio to Lorenzo il Magnifico"
    Friday : Visit: San Lorenzo
  • Week 3
    Monday : "Botticelli and the neoplatonic spirit"
    Tuesday : "Michelangelo in Florence"
    Wednesday : Visit: Museo Bargello
    Thursday : "Crisis of the new Century"
    Friday : Visit: Galleria Palatina
  • Week 4
    Monday : "Granducal Florence"
    Tuesday : Visit: Palazzo Vecchio
    Wednesday : "The mannerist city"
    Thursday : Visit: Cappelle Medicee
    Friday : Visit: Villa la Pietraia

Language Course

In the first two hours you will study and practice Italian grammar in order to improve reading and speaking skills. The international classes are made up of 3 to 8 students. Upon arrival a preliminary test will be given in order to ensure that you are placed in the most appropriate class.

The conversation course focuses on using and improving skills learned in the grammar classes as well as reading texts, listening to cassettes, watching fims, discussing current affairs, etc. Some lessons will be dedicated to the in-depth study of vocabulary and terms used in Art History seminars.

The Seminars

The seminar series on Italian art history is designed to provide and informed context for your comprehension of Italian and to encourage engagement in situ with the material of art history.

There are two different types of lessons:

  • General conversation on Art History topics, concentrating on the development of linguistic competence by means of analysis, description and commenting on works of art. Comparison, reading of original sources and modern criticism are also integral part of these lessons.
  • The second type of lesson involves in-depth study of specific aspects of History of Art in Florence between the 14th and the 16th centuries thus dedicating particular attention to the works present in the city. Several seminars will be held in museums and churches to enable a direct experience of the art being discussed.

The seminars are conducted by a group of young scholars and teachers of history, art history and philology. They are held in Italian, in such a way as to insure that even those will little prior knowledge of Italian will be able to follow them and participate in the discussions. There will be an English-speaking tutor on hand to assist with any difficulties, and for students with no prior knowledge of Italian the initial seminars will be replaced by intensive training in Italian conversation. After just a few days, a transfer to the regular seminars will be possible.

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